Pretty Pictures: GeekFest and Medieval Church

Here are some pics I took of the GeekFest table top set up before anyone arrived:

The 'A Song of Blades and Heroes' end - this was just for display.

More of those singing, blade waving heroic men (including my Goblin Giant made from a $2 shop action figure)

The whole table and historic courthouse in which it was set.

The 'Battle of Coal Creek' end with the terrain board, warbands and reference sheets.

And from another angle...

As promised last ishoo, the medieval church I just finished.

I'm out of coloured toner, so I printed monochrome and hand coloured, which gives a nice, washed out medieval look.

It's basically impossible to tell in these shots, but there is clear plastic infront of the the window designs.

And the church from behind.

Well, there you go. Eye Candy. I'm currently packing for CanCon. If you are coming, make sure you bring vast sums of money, since I'll probably be selling off some of what I make. Also you will need to pay for sessions and eat Pringles. I need the tubes.

Pretty Pictures: The Battle of Coal Creek

It's been a long time since I posted any terrain related content to TFH. There's a very good reason for that - I've been very busy on a secret project which did not lend itself to the TFH Ishoo format. But it can now be unveiled - The Battle of Coal Creek.
This is a 600mm square board, modelled up to replicate an area of Coal Creek Historic Park and Musseum in Korumburra, just down the road from where I live. On Saturday, it'll be used at GeekFest 2015 for participation games using the Fanticide rule set. I've condensed the actual terrain features down a bit - the courthouse and general store are a lot further apart in real life, but to get all the things I wanted onto the board, I had to shrink a few bits and pieces.
First, some reference pictures (I took a lot more than this, but most of them were just pics of details I ended up simplifying out)

The courthouse at Coal Creek

The front of the bank - the back of the building is the Paymaster's Office for the mine.

The General store. I couldn't find anythign near that font, so I decided on a different set of signs - the place has obviously been repainted since the time of the battle.

Taken from just in front of the general store, this gives you an idea of how much I've condensed things. And how I've ignored the tree. I should just point out that, Like Sovereign Hill in Ballarat, Coal Creek is roughly where the mine was, but most of the buildings were not originally there. Most of them have been brought from elsewhere and set up in the park, so actually, the place is nothing like Korumburra during the early coal mining days.

Now on to actual construction photos!

Initial styrofoam board construction on top of a sheet of MDF. It's not solid - only areas which needed to be carved are foam.

The foam is carved into roughly the right shape. Sandpaper was then used to smooth things, and some modelling clay was also used to fill a few gaps.

The foam, with wheel ruts added.

All work is inspected by a professional Bavarian hippo.

Building shells and fences mocked up in place with some figures for scale.

General overview of the whole board.

Another overview, although from a different angle.What will they think of next?

Yet another overview shot.

And still more overview shots.

The bottom of the slope and the back of the bank.

A rioting miner, seen here with his stolen loot slung over his shoulder as he leaves the Paymaster's Office.

A pair of unsavoury characters outside the general store.

It's not easy to spot, but there is an interior in the store. Well, a backdrop photography anyway.

A pair of stalwart constables guard the all important wanted posters.

The front of the bank, with guards. It's news to me Australiasia is a nation...

The front of the courthouse has been simplified to save time and sanity.

Side wall of the bank, with advertising posters.

The general store from another angle, with menacing thug leaning on sign pointing completely the wrong direction (Loch is actually the other way!)

The courthouse.

Surprising many, the courthouse also has a back view

Gippsland Geekfest 2015

I am now basically beholden to mention

mostly because it explains what I have been doing lately, but ALSO because you should go. Oh yes you should. Even if you are not from Gippsland. Or Australia. Or Earth.
Okay, maybe if you are not from Earth you can give it a miss.

Gippsland Geekfest 2015 is something I agreed to help organise after I got fed up with the literary festival. I mean, a literary festival does not give one enough opportuntity to throw things at other things and build scale replicas of things which do not exist.
Geekfest does give one many opportuntities to do these things. Behold the immortal words of our mission statement-ish thing!

 For countless eons of time the geekly population of Gippsland was without form and purpose, without organization and without a single, unifying event to bring them together to glorify and praise all forms of geek culture. And then into this darkness strode a shining colossus of colossal shininess, and looked upon this dreary situation and declared ‘Let There Be Geekfest’ in words which bore almost no resemblance to thunder.            And there was.            And it was good.            And Geekfest was dedicated to the glory of all things geek in Gippsland. A place where learned and scholarly debate on which doctor is best, which captain is supreme and which fantasy is worthy of being considered final could happen. A place where men and women of all ages could dress as fictional men and women of all ages and be greeted not with cries of derision, but with rousing applause. A place where a man could wield 40,000 Warhammers. A place to debate the merits of different spandex-clad heroes. A place where the Lion-o could lie down with the LAN. A place for all punks, be they cyber, steam, diesel or atom. A place of geek pride.            And thus it shall be on Saturday 17^th of January, 2015, when Coal Creek Community Park and Museum hurls open it’s portals and extends it’s welcoming arms to the massed hordes of Geekdom, and the inaugural Geekfest commences. Events of great moment and magnitude shall occur; demonstrations of Wargaming prowess; participation role-playing sessions, displays of cosplaying excellence, steampunk sartoriallity, and medieval mayhem. And they shall occur in an atmosphere of supportive and all-embracing tolerance. And they shall be family friendly and shall inspire coming generations and grizzled elders alike to take up that greatest of mantles which is the title; Geek.

Enough beholding! Go check out the website!

Oh yes - I said this explained what I've been doing lately instead of posting ishoos...

Well, apart from the recent comissions, I have also been working on making a 2 foot square full modeled up terrain board replica of part of Coal Creek. Which you will have to attend Geekfest to see.

Or wait for me to post photos online. 

Which I will not do till AFTER Geekfest.

So I guess you're back to going to Geekfest again.